FINAL SCORESHEET

DALLAS (SMU) – No. 7 SMU showed nothing but dominance in the fall finale at the Dallas Equestrian Center on Friday afternoon as the team defeated No. 6 Fresno State by a final score of 17-2. The 15-point margin checks in as the second largest winning margin in program history.

The Mustangs (5-4, 2-1 ECAC) swept two events and all four Most Outstanding Performer (MOP) honors in their second matchup of the season against the Bulldogs (4-4, 1-1 Big 12). Fresno State earned a slim 11-7 victory when the two competed in Fresno, California on Nov. 6.

The Mustangs came out of the pens on fire as they swept all five Horsemanship points against the Bulldogs in the day's first event. Senior Mallory Vroegh kicked off the action with an event-high score of 79 that earned her the MOP honor. Senior Megan Waldron and sophomore Nya Kearns won their points as each scored a 77.5 while junior Lily Anderson won her matchup 77-71.5. Senior Payton Neiberger completed the 5-0 sweep thanks to a score of 76.

SMU continued its hot start with a 4-1 win in Flat. Graduate student Madi Johnson claimed the first point with a 77 and was followed by junior Madigan Eppink, who earned the event's highest score and MOP honor with an 85. Freshman Hensley Humphries kept things going as she claimed her first collegiate point, scoring an 83 in her first start. After Fresno State won their first point of the day, sophomore Katy Merchant defeated her opponent 81-62 for the fourth and final Mustang Flat point.

The second half of Friday's action saw just as much success for the 'Stangs as they earned the day's second event sweep in Fences. An MOP-winning ride from junior Alex Pielet earned a score of 85 and claimed the first point for SMU. She was followed by freshman Elli Yeager, who scored a 76, Humphries, who tallied an 81 to go undefeated on the day, senior Devin Seek, who finished with an 83, and junior Emma Jolly, who won her matchup 75-55.

With the SMU win already clinched, the two teams headed into Reining. The Bulldogs claimed the first point, but it was all Mustang power after that. Freshman Maria Richards won her matchup with a 72 before sophomore Chalyce Head tied her opponent at 73. Juniors Taylor Zimmerman and Dani Latimer picked up the final two points with tallies of 69.5 and 72.5, respectively. Latimer's ride earned her the MOP title.

The impressive 15-point win is the biggest difference for the Mustangs this season and finishes behind a 17-1 victory against TCU on Feb. 29, 2020 for the second largest in SMU Equestrian history.